north/south/west

our family has a lot happening right now! i feel quiet overwhelmed & a little anxious about everything. we are going to get our sweet amos from uganda in the next few weeks & then we're moving up north. i'm feeling sad about leaving memphis & all mike & i have known as a couple & all our boys have ever known. the Lord has done A LOT during our time here & we've been through so so much! we will miss our dear friends who have stood with us through trials & sadness & they've rejoiced with us in sweet seasons. the Lord has sanctified us & made us more like Him. i'm soooo grateful i'm not who i was when we moved here. :) i just don't want to get caught up in the craziness of this time & forget to enjoy these last weeks here with our friends & sweet boys. i know all this change will be hard for our boys & i want them to feel secure in our love & always point them to the Lord. i want them to know that though everything around us changes our God NEVER changes!

i know our God is faithful & He will sustain us. this season will be sweet if i choose to let it be. memphis has been home to the beginning of our family & we rejoice in all He's done.

check up on the north & west.

al

nashville getaway

about a month ago mike & i got away to nashville for some moments alone before craziness ensued... & it has. praise the Lord for that time. we love nashville. we will miss it a lot when we move away from the south. i like it so much more than memphis. naturally beautiful! 

enjoy some instagrams of our trip...

al

this season

this season has been quite difficult for me.

i know the Lord is sovereign over this time.

i have to cling to Him. 

we're moving,

we're leaving all our boys have known,

we're adding a sweet little amos to our family,

we're moving further away from my family,

we're stepping into difficult/uncomfortable/sanctifying times,

we're living in sanctifying times,

we have a lot to accomplish before we go to africa,

i'm missing my mom,

we're in a season of unorganized craziness,

we're saying a lot of "goodbyes".

i feel like i can't handle it sometimes.

& at times i feel like i can't breathe.

i feel like our days are flying by us.

i feel like i'm trying to grab on to every moment i can with friends & my guys.

Father, be the biggest thing in our lives during this season.

i can rest in Your peace.

i know You are good & You are over all things.

i trust You.

al

i felt so small

mike & i flew to nyc this past weekend...

i had this in my ears.

we were floating somewhere above pennsylvania & i looked out the window...

it was so dark. all i could see was the moon, it was sooo bright, & all the stars burning in the sky.

we were soaring over a sea of white fluffy clouds. seriously i couldn't see anything below the white ocean. i looked out across the vast darkness & saw other planes floating along. i thought about how those planes were filled with people... people going about their lives. flying from here to there. busy people. hurting people. people that are loved by the very Creator of this beauty that we were flying through. 

our little plane, the many thousands of little planes that were flying through the skies at that moment, filled with hundreds of thousands of people. 

i felt so small.

& yet so loved & so honored & so grateful for His great love for me, for us, for this world that doesn't even take a look out the window to see how great He is. we are surrounded by His awesome creation.

i pray that the lost & the saved of this globe would "look out the window" & be struck with awe. & they would be wooed by our loving Father. 

He is so amazing!

al

my dear mommy

my mom past away from brain cancer 4 years ago today. sometimes i feel like i can't handle how much i miss her. i think about her often & wish she was here to be grandmom to our little boys. i wish i could pick up the phone & call her whenever i like. a few nights ago i was overwhelmed with sadness & i wept for about 10 mins over my beautiful mom. michael held me & he cried too. i weep for my self & how i wish she was still on this earth to go through life with me, i do not weep for her because she is before our Savior at this very moment, free from all pain & sin & the cares of this crazy world. i long for the day when i can run & hug her & laugh with her & worship our Father with her. she was an amazing worshipper even on this earth, i cannot WAIT to stand beside her & hear her sing His praises for eternity!  

here are a few pictures of sweet moments with my mom on our wedding day. i rejoice that i have these memories & that she could be apart of our wedding. thank you gracious Father!

(embracing the camera here)

i am so grateful for a mother who set a beautiful example of a mom & wife & lover of the Lord. i pray i can carry on her legacy with my children & strive even more to be like Christ.
i miss my mommy & how she would just let me hug on her all day. i miss her hands & how she played with my hair. i miss her joy & i miss how she encouraged me & pushed me toward the Lord.

i call her blessed.

this picture was taken a few days before she passed away. thank You Lord that she is free from pain. i rejoice that even in her pain she said, "yet, i will praise the Lord".

al

ps
james taylor was her favorite. i listen to him often & think of her. :)